The Missing Children
by Atomic Rex
Summary: A sequel of sorts to The Bite of '87, regarding the second incident that made Freddy's a less than reputable business. This is told as an actual narrative rather than a collection of news reports, and is meant to be a one-shot. Reader discretion is strongly advised, contains themes of kidnapping and child murder.


As usual, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza was buzzing with activity. Kids of all shapes and sizes were scurrying around the restaurant, with the majority of them abusing the quarter stealing arcade machines, chasing each other around in a foam and plastic indoor playground and stuffing their faces with as much cake and ice cream as they could. This type of physical exertion was to be expected, because after all, they were children. However, not all of them enjoyed the insanity of the rest of the birthday mecca. One little girl, who was wearing a navy blue, flower-patterned dress and had her hair in two long ponytails stood in front of the main stage, eyes wide open and mouth agape.

As the girl watched the robotic animals perform, she couldn't help but stare. She had never seen anything like it before. In her tiny kindergarten mind, these were real animals who could sing and play instruments. It was something she'd only seen in cartoons, and yet there they stood, a bunny, a bear and a chicken that acted perfectly human. She just had to try to talk to them. She just had to.

The girl took a look behind her, and saw that her mother was nowhere to be found, and that her grandpa had fallen asleep. Feeling somewhat anxious now, she walked up to the table and found a note.

_"Lydia, I went to go pick up your big brother from school. Stay close to grandpa. I'll be back in about ten minutes, I love you."_

Out of all of the big words on the little paper, she only really noticed a few that she definitely understood. Lydia, brother, school, grandpa, and love you. From that bit of information, she pieced the story together. Mommy would be back in a few minutes with her brother in tow. Perfect timing, that was all she would need to go talk to the singing animals.

Lydia glanced at her grandpa, who was still fast asleep. Being careful not to make any extra noise, she crept up closer to Freddy and his friends, and put a tiny leg up on the stage. As luck would have it, a nasty spill in the play area had diverted the staff's attention. No one could see her.

With a bit of effort, Lydia hoisted her whole self onto the stage. They were even bigger animals up close, maybe even taller than her dad. She could notice faint grinding sounds when an animal moved as well, which worried her somewhat. Was Freddy not well?

Desperate to speak with him, Lydia asked him a question.

"Freddy, are you okay?"

To her surprise, Freddy said nothing. He didn't even look at her. The music had stopped, and they were in idle mode. How could he not have heard her?

"Freddy! I'm Lydia, and I just think you're really cool."

Though she had tried to speak up, the bear casually turned his head to the other side. Like he was purposely ignoring her. Frustrated, Lydia turned to the purple bunny next to Freddy.

"What's wrong with Mr. Freddy?"

The enormous rabbit said nothing. His head swiveled in her direction, but he paid no attention to the little girl. Lydia stuffily walked over to the chicken, when suddenly the lights were turned out and she saw the curtains in front of the stage close. She was trapped with them forever!

Lydia started to panic. She could barely even see an inch in front of her, and she didn't want to bump into one of the animals. She considered calling for help, but her fear of punishment silenced her calls.

The noisy grinding sound had come to a halt, and the oily smell that had been lingering in the air was starting to become overwhelming. She had to find a way out, and fast.

Her fear was reignited by the sound of a door opening behind her. Lydia was almost afraid to turn around, but then she heard a familiar voice.

"Hiya, honeysuckle! You lost back here?"

The light from the door engulfed the room. Lydia squinted, and a familiar sight came into view.

"Freddy!" She sprinted towards the door and jumped into the bear's arms. Finally, he was talking to her.

"C'mon little gal, let's get you to the dressing room with the other members."

Lydia wrestled herself out of Freddy's grip. She shook her head 'no.'

"That's right, I forgot to tell you. Are you Lydia?"

"How do you know my name?" she asked, a slight hint of fear in her little voice.

Freddy put a massive paw on her back, and gently pushed her forwards through the big, dark hallway. "Lydia, you and four other very special boys and girls are going to be in my band! And here we are now, the rehearsal room is right in there."

Freddy pushed her towards a big door that smelled like cleaner and made a loud noise. She really didn't want to go in, but the idea of joining Freddy's band sounded fun. Would she get turned into an animal?

"Okay, but I want to play the drums Freddy. You promise?"

Freddy leaned down next to her, so close she could smell the booze on the bear's breath. "Oh yes. Lydia, you can touch anything you want in there. You just have to go inside."

Lydia grasped the doorknob and threw the door open. She didn't expect to see this at all.

Four other kids were all tied up. Their mouths were taped shut as well. Lydia wanted to scream, but the sight left her mute. She just wanted her mommy. She wanted to go back to the doctor so she could see if her strep throat was gone. She'd rather be doing math problems than standing here.

"Damn, you too kid? Come on, get in there you little parasite. Let's get you into your costume," Freddy said in a voice that was distinctly not his own. It sounded mean.

Before she could run, Freddy harshly pushed her into the closet and shut the door. Lydia had fallen on a few of the kids and bumped her head on the wall. Now she was crying, and she wanted to go home.

"Freddy... Freddy why did you push me?" Lydia said in between her sobs and sniffles.

"Because you wouldn't get in the room. And sorry, I'm not Freddy dear."

Freddy pulled at his own head, until it slipped off. Now he was a big, scary man that she had never seen before. Lydia was crying harder than ever.

Just outside, a few voices could be heard in the hallway, knocking on doors and alerting the other employees that a girl named Lydia Winston was missing.

"Shit! We have to do this fast. Okay, Lydia, just close your eyes and think of mommy. Think about how stupid she was to leave you alone with grandpa. And don't you dare scream, let me put this duct tape on your mouth. Won't hurt a bit if you just think about mommy. Okay, you ready?"

Lydia closed her eyes and prayed. A cold, sharp feeling hit her hard in the chest. And then, she fell forward, and could feel no more.


End file.
